


"All My Children, Holy Crap!"

by Wolverine6Claws



Category: X-Men (Comicverse)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-18
Updated: 2017-10-17
Packaged: 2019-01-18 21:44:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,194
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12396840
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wolverine6Claws/pseuds/Wolverine6Claws
Summary: Logan's children come to the mansion for a visit. An obviously AU story that includes all of Logan's children from every AU I could think of.





	1. Chapter 1

As Logan steered his motor up the long driveway his acute eyesight pinpointed Scott Summers standing on the front steps seemingly waiting for him. Scott was leaning against the brick wall with his arms folded across his chest apparently deep in thought. He looked up when the sound of the engine reached his ears then put his feet under him to push away from the wall. Logan brought the motorcycle to a stop just past the stairs and cut the engine.

Scott watched him silently, stuffing his hands into his front pockets as he waited.

Logan dismounted the Harley and popped the helmet off his head. He looked up at Summers who simply stared back at him. It was always difficult to tell what that dead-ass expression meant went you couldn't see his eyes.

"Summers," Logan greeted as he placed the helmet on the bike seat and walked toward him. He fished the remnants of a cigar out of his shirt pocket and jammed it between his teeth.

"Logan," Scott returned in way of a greeting. "Nice trip?"

"Pretty good, yeah," Wolverine answered and climbed the steps. Instead of lighting the stogie he removed it again to speak to the team's leader. "Got Charlie's message to return immediately. What's up?"

Scott shifted his weight and turned toward his shorter teammate. He paused a moment then his mouth twisted into a grin which made Logan's head cock to the side slightly. Scott pulled a hand from his pocket and, slapping it down on Wolverine's shoulder, steered him into the building, saying "You're gonna love this."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In the professor's office, Charles welcomed him home and handed him a note. "We had an unexpected visitor arrive two days ago. She had this with her and said she was told to give it to you. Yesterday, two more visitors arrived."

"Visitors?" Logan asked, taking the folded paper from the professor's fingers.

"Yes," Charles replied, watching Logan evenly.

"Who are they? Did they say?" he asked as he unfolded the paper.

"They claim to be... your children."

Logan paused before reading the note, raising his eyes to Xavier. "Excuse me?"

"They claim to be the children of Wolverine... of James Logan... of Weapon X."

"This a joke?" he asked and when Charles didn't offer an answer Logan looked down at the note in his hand.

~ Wolverine,  
Prepare for incoming.  
Keep them safe, they're all yours... mine... ours.  
I’ll come to get them when it’s safe.  
\- Logan ~

______________________________________________________

Scott and Charles escorted Logan to the library where the children waited in the company of Jean and Ororo. The children were sitting quietly in the large room when the men entered. Logan took a moment to look at each youngster, his discriminating eye taking in the details of each one; a young girl with long dark hair and a boy a bit older than her and shared the same features were both coloring in books with Jean. She looked up as they entered and smiled at Logan, a good sign he hoped.

Another young lady, a teenager of oriental descent, sat separate from the younger two sharing a cup of tea with Ororo. The two women appeared to be engaged in pleasant and familiar conversation when Ororo, like Jean, looked over at him and smiled as he stepped into the room.

The young lady sitting with Storm simply regarded him evenly and carefully placed her tea cup on the saucer she held. Logan stared into those eyes and thought he’d gone mad to see Mariko reflected in those black orbs.

“Pa!”

His reverie broken by the call, Logan turned from Ororo’s guest to see the young boy jump up from the table and run toward him.

“Pa!” he called again and stopped abruptly in front of his father, looking at him intently.

“Daddy!” the youngest girl called out and ran into Logan’s legs like a bulldozer, hugging his waist tightly.

Logan looked from the children with an askance expression and Scott simply gave him a bemused look.

“Logan,” Charles interjected to make introductions, “this is Jade and Scotty… and the young lady over there is Kirika. Your son and daughters.”

Logan wasn’t entirely sure how to proceed, but his confusion gave way to pride as he looked upon the faces of his children. He smiled and crouched down to look at his youngest daughter at her level. “Hi,” he said with a grin.

“Hi, Daddy. You look… different. But you look the same too,” she said, letting her fingers play in his thick whiskers.

“How so?”

Jade reached up to run her hair through Logan’s thick black hair. “Your hair… it’s not white… and you don’t have a ponytail either.”

“Yeah,” Scotty remarked. “Not like the other “you” who came to find us. He had black hair like you but he had a big scar across this eye,” the boy pressed his finger to Logan’s right eyebrow. “But we could tell it was still you… but not you at the same time. I think… even you aren’t our real Pa. Are you.”

“It’s okay,” Logan assured him. “The universe is a crazy place, kid. There’s a lot I’ve seen and done, crossing into other planes of existence isn’t so far-fetched. Just remember, in any universe you are my son an’ I’m still your pa… and you’re safe here.”

“I know,” Scotty said then added proudly. “I promised you I’d always look after Jade and Ma and I have.”

Logan grinned. “You’re a good boy… Scotty, right?”

Scotty nodded with a smile and then looked to his baby sister as his father turned to her.

“You behaving yourself for your brother?” Logan asked Jade and she smiled and nodded. “Good girl.” He stood up and felt eyes on him. He turned to see Scott regarding him seriously through his rose-colored goggles before grinning.

“You named your son, Scotty?” Summers asked with a smug grin.

“I’m sure it was his mother’s idea… and I’m positive I argued the point,” Logan replied under his breath so the children wouldn’t hear, but Charles smiled as Logan stepped carefully past the two younger siblings toward the fourteen year old girl sitting with Storm.

Kirika stood up gracefully as her father came toward her. She bowed as he stopped before her, a sign of respect in her mother’s culture. “Chichi.” She greeted him with a single word, Father.

“Mariko?” Logan asked. It was difficult for him to find words. The thought that he and his one true love had actually had a family together in another parallel universe rocked Wolverine. Kirika bowed again in acknowledgement.

“Hai,” she acknowledged his question with a nod. She wore a beautiful green kimono and her jet black hair, as fine and straight as M’iko’s ever was, was pulled back away from her face. Like her mother, she looked like a porcelain doll, with almond shaped eyes so black they looked like pools of melted dark chocolate.

“Anata wa kireida,” Logan told her she was beautiful, just like her mother. “Anata no okasan no yona.”

Kirika bowed again in thanks and Logan took a moment to revel in her, seeing her mother so clearly in her china doll face. Then he broke his attention away from her to regard the other two youngsters.

“Who’s your mother?” he asked.

“Daddy,” Jade admonished with a look of fear. Her brother rested his hands on her shoulders to reassure her.

“Our mother’s name is Maureen. You sometimes call her Mo, for short,” Scotty informed him.

Logan couldn’t think of any woman he knew with the name Maureen. He finally shrugged it off with the belief that he didn’t necessarily meet all the same people in each life in every alternate reality. He was sure though that she must be a grand woman though if their children were any indication.

“You a farmer, Scotty?” Logan asked, having picked up the scent of rich soil hovering around the boy even after two days of clean living inside the mansion.

“We are, Pa,” Scotty nodded, indicating both he and his father.

“Oh, that I’d like to see,” Scott remarked. “The farmer in the dell… Old Man Logan,” Scott teased.

“Well the farm isn’t doing too well right now,” Scotty told Scott, “but Pa tries. He tries real hard. Ma says that he was a great man a long time ago… a super hero… but he gave up that life.”

“To be with us!” Jade crowed happily and hugged Logan’s leg again.

Scotty looked at her with a sorrowful expression that seemed older than his years. “Sort of… Ma don’t tell us the whole story, but from what I gather somethin’ really bad happened… an’ Pa walked away from being a superhero. He tries hard to get the farm up an’ runnin’ but the Hulk Gang won’t leave us alone, they keep ruinin’ everything.” The boy turned away from Summers and looked his father in the eye. “Ma says you could fight ‘em off if ya’ wanted to, but she says you refuse to hurt anyone like that ever again. Not sure what that means…”

Logan listened, as did the others, until Scotty stopped talking. Logan simply regarded his son with a serious expression until Jean came over and gently guided the children away from the three men. “Who wants lunch?”

“Meeee!” Jade cheered as she was led out of the library.

With a gentle urging by Ororo, Kirika followed them out, giving her father a slow nod as she passed by him.

The three men watched until the children were out of sight.

“Wow,” Logan commented.

“Yeah,” Summers agreed with a grin.

Ororo smiled and took Logan’s arm as she escorted him out of the room. “Come on, “Daddy”, it is time for lunch.”

________________________________________________________________________

“Sorry to interrupt everybody’s fun time, but we have incoming,” Kitty reported over their comm. links. 

Logan finished the last bite of his sandwich and picked Jade’s napkin up off the floor to hand it back to her for the third time during the meal. “Where is Kitty?” he asked the others.

“She’s been keeping watch for others in the Danger Room. That’s where the rift opened to let these three through,” Charles told him. “We didn’t know if we should expect anymore so I have the X-Men taking turns sitting watch.”

“And apparently we have another child inbound…” Ororo added with an elegant smile.

Logan pushed away from the table and the others did the same. Dr. McCoy caught up to him and slapped him on the back of his shoulders with one big blue paw and smiled.

“You certainly are prolific, aren’t you?” Hank mentioned with amusement.

“I’m the best at what I do…” Logan returned with equal good-humor.

__________________________________________________________________________

 

And so it was. On the second day, three more were sent to the mansion. In the first trip was a young brother and sister, Brian and Marie. Most notable when Logan and the others entered the room to greet them was that they too were obviously of oriental descent. Upon careful questioning it was revealed that they were the children of Logan and Mariko from yet another destiny. This made Logan grin, despite the odd situation he found himself in.

Later that same afternoon, the call came over their comm-links; it was Rogue this time on watch duty. Logan, Scott and Jean greeted a teenage boy named Daken who resembled his father in an eerie likeness. Logan scowled at the name given to his son, only he knew what it meant in a foreign language. The boy was rough and brash and lively and Jean smiled as she realized he was going to make things quite interesting for Logan.

The following day, two more were sent to their father’s custodial guardianship. One was an eight year old boy named Erista, who identified himself as the son of Gahck who is born of the Tribe of Fire in a place called the Savage Land. That information piqued Wolverine’s concern and he mumbled to Xavier that he’d be taking a trip when this was all over to have a heart to heart with Gahck in his own timeline. Just to be sure.

The other arrival on the third day was a beautiful 16 year old girl who called herself Wild Thing. Daughter of Wolverine and… Elektra! Her name was Rina and she boasted her father’s mutant powers, healing factor and heightened senses. Being the daughter of two of the best martial art masters in any universe also meant that Rina Logan was a force to be reckoned with; her parents made sure of that and taught her the arts well.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

To everyone’s pleasant surprise Wolverine took to parenthood much like one would expect of an alpha male; especially one that harbored so many of the fine attributes of the majestic wolf. Logan and his pack of offspring seemed to fit together like perfect puzzle pieces, which astounded the professor who kept an eye on the brood and their father to offer assistance if needed.

The rest of the X-Men were also more than willing to help out; often taking one or two children for a few hours while Logan focused on one or two at a time; to get to know them better and to keep his frustration level to a minimum. For anyone to go from a single lifestyle to instant fatherhood overnight would overwhelm anyone, but to become father to so many instantly… well, the X-Men had no idea how Wolverine would handle it all.

The two teenage boys did well keeping each other company; that’s certainly not to say that they kept each other out of trouble. They were, after all, the sons of Wolverine.

Erista and Marie were of the same age and both were quiet, calm individuals. They enjoyed each other’s company in the gardens while Marie read books to Erista and tried to teach him how to read.

Brian was strangely a lot more like Scott Summers than Logan was inclined to be polite about. To Logan’s chagrin, Brian was extremely calm in all things, methodical and studious. He followed Scott around, always engaging him in conversation and Summers obliged happily – to Jean’s grins and giggles. It didn’t pass without Logan’s notice that Jean seemed to be watching Scott’s responses to the children as if making future parenting plans. Whatever.

Today was Logan’s day to have lunch with the adults since Kitty and Rogue had a field day planned. Laura aka X-23 was now 19 and had taken Logan’s bike to the airport to pick up Amiko Kobayashi. His adopted daughter had traveled from her home in Japan in order to take the opportunity to meet her siblings and half siblings. It wasn’t every day you got to meet family from other parallel realities. 

So the four young ladies had kept most of the children occupied for most of the day and Logan was enjoying a quiet lunch with Ororo, Hank, Jean and Scott.

“How are you holding up, Logan?” Henry asked.

“Fine,” Logan replied as he took another bite of the homemade beef stew Jeannie had made the night before.

“I must admit that I’m rather impressed with your handling of the situation. I never envisioned you so willing… accommodating, if you will… to be a single parent of such a large brood.”

“Why not?” Logan asked. “I practically raised Rogue and Kitty and Jubilee…”

“That is true,” Hank nodded with the memories.

“And Laura… well I didn’t really raise her, but sort of helped to re-train her… de-program her…”

“I don’t think she, like you, can ever truly be de-programmed, Logan. You are made of the same cloth.”

“Literally,” Logan murmured. “But most of them are nearly grown so it’s not that difficult, Hank.”

“True, I suppose,” McCoy agreed. “They are all very well behaved too.”

“That surprise you?” Logan looked at him over his fork, paused before taking the bite.

“Oh… not at all.”

Jean, Scott and Ororo shared a grin at that last when the door to the kitchen opened and two boys entered in a noisy and excited manner. Logan’s nose immediately picked up their scents and identities.

Daken and Scotty came into the kitchen, dirty and smelling like forest, they'd been outside most of the morning having adventures in the nearby woods. No surprise to anyone on that one. They scrambled past the other tables and chairs, Daken caught his hip on one of the chairs and it spun around behind him as he raced by.

“Sorry,” he offered as Logan looked up with a scowl. He watched as the older boy paused long enough to right the chair and push it back under the table haphazardly before catching up with his partner.

Scotty was trying to catch his breath and talk at the same time, they'd obviously run back to the mansion to share their exciting discovery.

“Take it easy, Scotty… catch your breath first,” Hank instructed, ever the concerned physician.  
Scotty gulped a couple of breaths as his half-brother came up alongside him.

"Pa! Pa, guess what? We found a possum in the woods!"

Logan took another bite from his fork and replied matter-of-factly, "That's where possums live, boy, so it's only natural to find them there."

"Yeah, but this one is dead, Pa!" Scotty exclaimed.

Logan took a sip of his coffee and offered casually, "Possums play dead, Scott."

“Well I know that Pa, but -- this one is really dead."

"Oh yeah?” Logan asked looking up at the dirt smudged faces of his sons. “How do you know this one is really dead?"

Daken smiled, white teeth gleaming as he answered. "Cuz he pissed in its ear and it didn't move or nothin'!"  
Taken aback by the youngster’s brash language the adults look up in shock. Hank immediately frowned at him. "Pardon me??"

To that Scotty nodded and explained."Yeah you know, I went 'pssst' in its ear and it didn't move."

Ororo nearly barked a laugh but caught herself behind a napkin. Jean turned back around with a bemused grin and shared it with Scott who was openly smiling. Hank took a deep breath and turned his eyes to Logan who didn’t seem to think anything untoward about his son’s accounting of the story.

When Logan looked up to the silence at the table and, noting McCoy’s stern expression, he did a double take and then glanced at the others at the table who were all looking at him with varying degrees of amusement.

Logan cleared his throat and shifted in his seat. “Watch your language, Daken,” he told the boy, looking at Hank for approval. He received it with a nod from McCoy.

“Huh? What the hell did I say?” Daken asked innocently. 

“Oh boy,” Hank muttered.

Daken shrugged when nobody chose to enlighten him and he smacked Scotty on the arm, gesturing toward the patio.

Logan just grinned and finished his lunch as the two boys turned and ran back outside.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The following day there were two more rifts opened in the Danger Room. Scott and Jean were on duty together when the first one came through. They both sat up and blinked as a glowing anomaly appeared in the room below them and a small child was deposited in the room before the rift winked out of existence. She couldn’t have been more than three or four years old, with brown skin, blue eyes and stark white hair.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Scott uttered.

Jean rose from her seat to go to the youngster who now stood alone in a giant cold room crying and scared as Scott activated the communications link.

“Logan… you and Storm might want to get to the Danger Room… right now.”

“What is it, Scott?” Ororo’s voice came across the speaker.

“I believe it’s your daughter, Ro.”

“Pardon me?”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Wolverine and Storm entered the room to see Jean standing there holding a tiny version of the Weather Witch.

“Oh my,” Ororo remarked, her eyes alight with wonder at the small child.

Logan, however, had stopped dead in his tracks at the first inkling of what the existence of that child meant.

Scott came over to him and regarded him closely. “Seriously?” he asked as if accusing.

“What.” Logan returned defensively.

“What do you mean, ‘what’? That’s your daughter.”

“And?” Logan replied, still overly-defensive.

“And?” Scott said incredulously. “Who do you think her mother might be?”

Logan glanced at Storm who was now cooing and taking her babe from Jean’s arms.

“Mommy!” the little girl squealed and hugged Ororo tight around the neck.

“Hello, baby,” Storm greeted her daughter from another reality. She then turned toward Logan with her sculpted eyebrows raised high and Wolverine swallowed heavily. His mouth remained slightly ajar, his eyebrows knitted together severely. Ororo smiled at his stumped expression.

“I… I don’t… I don’t get it,” Logan stammered.

“All evidence to the contrary, Logan, it would appear you get it a lot,” Scott mentioned, folding his arms across his chest and scowling at Wolverine before looking at Storm.

“Do not look at me in that tone,” Ororo admonished him. “Obviously, Logan and I are much closer in her reality.” Storm grinned at the two men while Jean beamed as if she couldn’t wait to tell everyone about this one.

“What’s this?” Jean asked, pointing to a note pinned to the child’s shirt.

Ororo turned it over and read it aloud. “This is Kendall Logan, daughter of Storm. She’s nicknamed Torrent because her mutant powers are showing already. Take care of her, Logan, she’s priceless.” That is where the note ended and Ororo hitched her babe up higher and turned to walk out. “She is that,” she stated. “Thank you, Logan,” Ororo chimed as she disappeared out the door.

Jean smiled at Wolverine as she passed by him on her way out. “You dog,” she said.

Logan grinned. Seeing Summers still eyeballing him coldly, Logan just shrugged. “When you got it, you got it,” he said and followed the women out of the room.

 

 

TBC’d


	2. All My Children, Holy Crap!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Logan's children from every AU comes to visit....

With the help of nearly every member of the X-Men team they were able to assign rooms to the children and get them tucked in for the night. Jean and Scott had offered to tuck in the younger girls and went through the traditional saying of prayers. Hank had reminded them carefully that Wolverine may balk harshly at such a thing, but Jean shrugged him off since Logan was busy putting his sons to their beds with the assistance of Charles, Kurt and Bobby and “what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him”.

Although, over the years Logan’s friendship with Nightcrawler had loosened up Wolverine’s strict denial of a loving deity, one could never be sure just how loose that perspective had gotten. Best to err on the side of caution, McCoy urged, when it comes to a parent and their beliefs being crossed in order to teach something different to their children without their consent. Jean however was certain that Logan wouldn’t mind bedtime prayers, so she and Scott would make sure Jade, Marie, and Kendall were bathed and dressed in soft, warm pajamas as they knelt beside Jade’s bed.

The bedtime routine the first two nights consisted of an hour of bedtime stories, lots of giggles and hugs and the prayers put an end to the evening. After tucking the girls in, Scott and Jean would wish them sweet dreams, mention something about bedbugs not biting and would slowly close the door amidst tiny voices whispering back to them ‘g’night’.

 

Down the hall, the scene was a bit different and not as warm and peaceful. Daken and Scotty were throwing pillows at each other and trash talking who was better in a real fight. Brian sat on his bed, watching the two rowdy ones like they were bugs under glass. Erista had pulled all the covers off his bed and piled them up near the headboard in a similar fashion to his bed of plant fronds and moss from the jungle he called home.

Bobby walked in with Kurt and both stopped in surprise to look around the room; the furniture was out of place, the beds had been moved in a cock-eyed manner, and there were dirty clothes strewn on the floor.

“Hey! You guys need to pick this stuff up,” Bobby told them, having to raise his voice a little to be heard over the two teenagers jumping around from bed to bed.

“He did it,” Scotty told them, pointing at Daken who spun around and bounced over to his bed and tackled him on the spot.

“Did not,” he replied as he pushed Scotty’s face into the pillow.

“Did too,” the smaller boy rebutted and wrestled his way free to push Daken off the side of the bed with a thud.

“Boys! You must stop this and get ready for bed,” Kurt called out, trying to get their attention.

“We ARE ready!” Daken called out with a big smile as he popped up as if he was on a springboard. He dove at Scotty and the two boys tumbled over the opposite side of the bed in a tangle of pillows and blankets they dragged to the floor with them.

Bobby went to the bathroom door and balked at the sight inside the little room. The mirror and faucet assemblies were covered with steamy fog, the toothpaste tube had been squished to a tortured death, wet towels tossed over all the racks and fixtures, water pooled on the floor and the rug was soaking wet and left lying on the tile.

He quickly scooped up the rug and wrung it out over the tub, which was still coated in thick suds and the drain gurgled its own complaint as it dealt with the dirty brown water escaped the porcelain prison. He draped the wet rug over the side of the tub and scooped up half a dozen wet towels and dropped them in the hamper, pushing it back into the corner near the door where it belonged.

Charles and Logan could hear the commotion as they walked down the hall toward the children’s rooms. The two men shared a glance and five more long strides brought them up to the doorway.

“Stop!” Scotty suggested to Daken in a hushed but desperate tone when he saw his father appear framed in the doorway. “Dak-ennnn,” he groaned as he was pile-driven off the bed by his more feral half-brother’s flying tackle.  
Charles watched the antics with an even expression but amusement gleaned in his blue eyes. Wolverine’s eyebrows screwed up and his tongue made a click that made Kurt and Bobby spin around.

“We tried to get them to settle down,” Bobby offered, kicking a pair of crumpled up jeans under a bed.

“It’s all right, Robert,” Xavier said. “Gentlemen, if you would, please. It is time for everyone to settle down. Tomorrow is another day ---“

His calm tone and poised demeanor went completely unnoticed by the rowdier of the male offspring. Charles sighed and glanced at Logan who was already taking a deep breath with the apparent plan of letting it out loudly.

“Knock it off!!!” Wolverine bellowed, but the shout had no anger in its tone. It was more for effect and to get their attention.

Silence fell upon the room and nobody so much as breathed. A few seconds later there was the sound of fabric rustling softly and then the tops of two heads appeared followed by two sets of wide eyes peering over the side of the bed.

Logan turned his head to see the quieter one, Brian, staring at him much like Hank does when waiting to scold him for being rowdy himself. Logan simply grinned at the boy before turning back to the other two who were now climbing onto the bed. Still they pushed at each other and blamed the other for getting them yelled at. Logan grit his teeth to try to keep from grinning, he couldn’t help it though.

“Bed… now… both of you. All of you,” he corrected, including Erista and Brian.

Once Scotty and Daken had disentangled from each other and dropped into their own beds to do as they were told, Logan reached over to snap the light off.

“No talking,” he instructed.

“Yes, sir,” Daken answered.

“No noise.”

“G’night, Pa,” Scotty replied as a peace offering.

“G’night,” Logan wished them all as the professor backed away from the door so he could close it. Immediately, from the other side of the door he could hear whispering. “I can hear you,” Logan reprimanded. He listened… silence. Then he heard Scotty whisper “told you”. Logan smiled and so did Charles before the two men left the floor in peace.

 

The next morning found most of the kids dispersed in their own fun activities. Logan’s teen-aged daughters were off to the mall for a day of shopping with Rogue and Kitty. The boys were outside playing a light form of tackle football while Hank supervised the activity. The whistle he blew every few minutes to indicate a foul play or simply to pause the play to lightly scold for a tricky play made by any one of the rambunctious boys could be heard by those inside the library just yards away from the playing field.

Jade, age six, was a little too young to go to the mall for a day of shopping with the older girls and yet too young to follow Erista and Marie around, so she had followed the sound of someone typing on a keyboard to find her daddy working on a laptop.

“Hi, Daddy,” she’d greeted as she entered.

“Hey there, Li’l darling,” Logan replied and finished the sentence he was working on. He turned toward her and watched her meander into the room, looking at the floor and turning her head side to side as she let her eyes follow the tapestry design on the Persian rug beneath his feet. “What’re you up to today?” he asked.

Jade shrugged and made a soft mewling sound; not quite a whine, but a sound of uncertainty. “Nnnn… I don’t know. Everyone is doing something.”

“Why aren’t you doin’ somethin’?” he asked. When she wandered over to the couch near the windows and slowly climbed up on it to peer out the window at the sounds of voices outside, Logan turned back to his work.

“What are you doing, Daddy?” she asked when the sound of the keys clicked behind her.

“I’m workin’ on a mission report. The professor asked me to finish it… actually he had to remind me about it after… well after everythin’ that’s been goin’ on lately,” he shared with her.

“What’s been going on lately?” the six year old asked, nearly pressing her nose to the glass and seemingly only half listening.

“Ya’ know… you an’ your brothers and sisters all showin’ up at the same time…” he told her, glancing over the monitor of his laptop toward her as he worked.

“Yeah,” she nodded……… “Daddy?”

“Yeah?”

“How come we all came here to stay with you?”

“I’m not sure, darlin’… I think to keep you safe,” he mentioned as he checked his hand written notes to his right.

“Oh,” Jade remarked……. “Daddy?”  
“Yeah?”

“To keep us safe from what?”

“Ummm… I dunno, babygirl,” Logan answered truthfully as he too seemed to be only half-focused on their conversation.

“Oh. ------ Daddy?”

“Yeh?”

“Who would want us not safe?”

“A lot of people, I guess,” he replied, not thinking.

Jade turned slightly to look at him over her shoulder. “A lot of people want to hurt us?”

“Apparently somebody does…” he muttered as he worked.

“Daddy?”

“Yeah, Jade.”

“Does a bad man want to hurt me?”

Logan looked up from his work, his eyes finding hers across the room. He sat back with a long sigh and scowled at himself.

“No, baby. No bad men want to hurt you. Some want to hurt me… and they think they can do that by…” Logan stopped and chewed on his lower lip for a moment. “No, baby, no bad men want to hurt you. And no bad men would ever hurt you. I’ll make sure of that.”

Jade smiled at him. “Cuz you’re a superhero… like Mama said?”

“Yeah,” Logan crooked a grin at his young daughter. “Cuz I’m a superhero like your mama said.”

Jade smiled at him, “I knew it.” Then she turned around again to watch the boys outside on the grass. They were shouting and pushing and falling down and Dr. McCoy; who looked to Jade like a big blue teddy bear, would blow his orange whistle and they’d all get up and start all over again.  
"Daddy?"

Logan grunted, almost deaf now to her calling  
.  
"Can I go outside and play with the boys?"

Logan glanced over at her as she leaned against the window sill on one elbow standing on the couch to see outside. His eyes danced from her back to the monitor and again to her, but his fingers never stopped tapping the keys.

"You don't wanna play with the boys, darlin'."

"Why not?" she asked.

“Well,” Logan replied, taking a moment to think of a good answer for her, "Cuz they're too rough."

“Oh,” Jade answered. She fell silent for a moment; thinking, then she brightened with a smile and said cheerfully, "If I can find a smooth one... can I play with him?"

Logan balked at the question and nearly fell out of his chair. “What? No!”

“Okaaaaaaaaaaaaay,” she answered, rolling her eyes. “Jeeeez.”

 

# # #

 

Jean had stopped outside the door as she passed by a few minutes before. When she’d heard the voices inside the library she had peered in to see Logan in the room alone with his younger daughter. She’d decided to listen in when Jade began to question her father.

She didn’t relish eavesdropping but her curiosity had gotten the better of her and she worried briefly as Logan spoke of people wanting to hurt the children but she hadn’t interfered. She smiled though as Wolverine realized by himself that his words had caused a sense of fear in the child. He recovered well and reassured his daughter that she was safe with him.

Jean had to hurry away though as she nearly laughed out loud when Jade’s final question caused Logan to nearly fall out of his seat and bark a reply back at her. The child, not even ruffled by her father’s exclamation was priceless and showed her a glimpse of what kind of relationship the children had with their father, even in other realities. Logan certainly had his hands full, but the entire situation was having a great effect on him and on all the X-Men, including Scott. Even Kitty and Rogue were enjoying the extra company with Kirika, Rina and Laura and Amiko around to do so many girl things with.

_____________________________________________________________

 

Later that afternoon, Logan was working just outside the garage on his bike, replacing a few parts and taking time to polish whatever parts he had soiled with greasy hands once the specific task was completed. He had tunes playing softly from the boom box on the floor behind him and a stogie clamped between his teeth. It was a great day, the sun shining bright, the temperature not too hot, a light breeze keeping things comfortable. It was a good day.

He paused a moment when the sound of excited voices and laughter rolled over the small knoll and he smiled to himself. He could pick out the voices of some of his kids in that group and it warmed Logan’s spirit to know his many children were fitting in so well at the mansion – in his life. He’d always wanted a family. It was a goal seemingly out of reach in this particular life, but one he’d apparently been able to achieve somewhere in the universe. He grinned around the stump and puffed on it, sending a cloud of aromatic smoke to billow up around his head before dissipating.

His blue eyes followed the tops of heads as they appeared many yards away on the down slope of the side yard. The kids were enjoying the day outside doing gods-know-what. They were shouting and laughing and that’s all that mattered; they were safe and having a good time. Their ability to roll with the punches made Wolverine proud; even separated from their mothers the children seemed plenty comfortable being in their father’s custody alone. Logan hoped that spoke well of him.

Logan’s gaze shifted slightly toward the main gate at the estate’s entrance as his sensitive ears picked up the sound of the X-Men’s SUV down shifting automatically to take the slow turn up the long drive. A moment later the top of the black roof shone darkly against the surrounding green landscape and seconds later it rolled past him, the tires crunching tiny pebbles on the asphalt as the driver steered past him carefully.

The girls had gone down to the city again, to shop and walk around, have lunch, watch boys and whatever else teen-age girls needed to do that was as important to them as breathing. Once the truck was pulled into the door further down from where he sat on the ground he listened to the four doors open and then close as the occupants got out. Female voices yammering away non-stop as they gathered up their bags and boxes and shuffled them about, figuring out who owned which package. Logan grinned to himself as he wiped his hands on a mechanics’ rag.

As the young ladies exited the garage with the treasures in hand, Logan stood up and grinned at them.

“Logan!” Kitty yelled to him.

“Sounds like you girls had a great time,” he offered and his gaze fell on Kirika. She seemed so quiet and much more demure than the other girls. He wondered how she was faring with the gang of them. He didn’t draw attention to her though as she stood nearby with her eyes downcast.

“Oh, you bet we did, Sugah,” Rogue crowed. “I think we maxed out our cards.”

“Sounds like you’ll all be assigned to another economics course next year,” he teased.

“Professor Xavier said he contacted my mother,” Rina interjected out of the blue.

Logan looked to her and nodded. “Yeah, he mentioned that… I’m sure she can’t wait to meet you.”

He still couldn’t quite figure that one out. He and Elektra had been good friends for a long time, but he didn’t think he would ever feel quite that way about her. He mentally shrugged off the strangeness of that and Rina seemed to sense his awkwardness where she was concerned. It didn’t escape her notice though that Logan’s gaze kept creeping back to Kirika.

“Yeah, well… I think she’s coming in tomorrow. I’m sure it’ll be nice for you to see her again,” she offered in a strange tone.

Logan looked back to her. “Yes it will. She and I have been through a lot together. We’re… close.”

“Right,” Rina replied with a glint in her eye. “See ya’ later,” she said and nudged Rogue to step away with her. The two of them stepped away and Amiko stepped up to him with a smile.

“Kon’nichiwa, Logan-san,” she greeted and pressed a warm kiss to his furry cheek.

“Hey, kiddo. It’s nice to have you here,” he smiled at her.

“It’s been… interesting,” she offered back.

“That it has,” Logan agreed. “Laura… how are you doin’?” he asked X-23.

“Doin’ fine,” Laura replied with a shrug, her dark gaze never ceasing their roving the grounds as she split her attention between the group and their surroundings.

Logan looked at Kirika again and Kitty picked up his desire to want to speak to her. She reached over to snag Laura’s sleeve. “Come on, girl. You can help me put my stuff away.”

Amiko remained with her father and Kirika. She looked from one to the other; Logan unable to take his eyes off of the girl and the girl unable to look up at him. “Shall I stay?” she asked.

Logan glanced at her. “Do you think you should?”

Amiko shrugged. “That’s up to you two.” Logan looked to Kirika and Amiko turned to her as well. “Anata wa watashi no shukuhaku o go kibōdesu ka?” she asked the question of Kirika.

“Watashi wa sore ga hitsuyōda to wa omowanai,” Kirika replied softly with a slight bow to her sister.

“She says she doesn’t believe it’s necessary for me to stay,” Amiko told him.

Logan grinned at her. “I know what she said.”

“Oh… right. Sorry,” Amiko offered, remembering that Logan was fluent in over twenty different languages, most assuredly Japanese was like a first language to him. He loved the people, the culture, everything… and most especially Kirika’s mother.

“I think we’ll be okay,” he told her and Amiko nodded and left the two alone.

Kirika’s eyes lifted just enough to note Amiko’s departure then shot to Logan before dropping again.

“Chichi,” Kirika addressed him again the same way she did two days ago. Since then she seemed to find reasons to be anywhere but where he was.

“Kon'nichiwa,” Logan greeted Kirika. “Ummm… anata ga tanoshii jikan o sugosu nodesu ka?” he asked if she had a good time with the other girls.

“Hai,” Kirika nodded. “Wareware wa, kaimono to chūshoku o totta. Sore wa ii ichi-nichidatta.”

Logan smiled when he heard she’d had a good day shopping and stopping for lunch with the girls. He gestured with a sweep of his arm for her to follow him to a nearby bench set beneath a grown willow tree. She did as he asked and took a seat before he settled beside her.

He took a moment to think about how he wanted to start and then decided it would be best to just address the issue straight on. That was his way and it was also Mariko’s way, so he figured it should be Kirika’s way too.

“Anata wa, watashi ga dareda ka shitte iru koto o watashi wa kanji o ete iruga, watashi wa anata o fukai ni sa seru.” //I'm getting the feeling that you know who I am, but I make you uncomfortable.// 

He began slowly and Kirika glanced at him, not denying what he said, so Logan continued. “Anata wa watashi-tachi no ma ni kusabi no yō ni aru kanji naze watashi o otsutae shitai to omoimasu ka?” //Do you want to tell me why there feels like a wedge between us?//  
Kirika hesitated for a moment, averting her gaze. “Keniuchio Harada.”

“Harada?” Logan blinked. The name surprised him. What did the Silver Samurai have to do with his daughter feeling awkward around him?

“Hai,” she confirmed, glancing at him.

“Harada-san wa anata to watashi to don'na kankei ga aru nodesu ka?” he asked her how the mutant samurai fit into the scene between them.

“Harada-san wa watashi no gifudesu,” she told him.

“He’s your… step-father?” Logan blinked.

“Hai,” she nodded. “He… forbids… me to speak… of you.” Logan frowned as his daughter spoke to him in his own native language.

“Your mother and I… aren’t together?” he asked.

“Īe anata wa, kanojo to kekkon suru kenri no tame ni kare o tatakatta yakuza wa, hahaoya ga anata ni sentaku shinai koto wa, kanojo no meiyo o hoji shi, tokutei shita. Anata wa... Gaijin.”  
//No. You fought him for the right to marry her, but the Yakuza made certain that mother could never choose you and retain her honor. You are...gaijin.//

Logan understood the honor ways of the Japanese. He also knew the Yakuza too well.

The Japanese Mafia - the Yakuza traced its earliest roots back to the familial samurai clans of ancient Japan. It was originally founded in order to protect their members from those who would oppress or exploit them. Clan Yashida was perhaps the oldest and most well known of these familial clans. The ancestral seat of Clan Yashida could still be found located in Miyago Prefecture, roughly 300 kilometers north of Toyko. Logan had visited there many times as Mariko Yashida, his one true love, was Oyabun, head of the Yakuza crime family, known as Clan Yashida.

Kirika watched her father as he fell deep into his own thoughts. The play of emotions and concern that etched his face compelled her to reach out and lay her hand atop of his. Logan blinked and looked down at her hand then looked at her and offered her a smile.

“You love her still?” she asked him, referring to her mother.

“I’ve always loved her. I will always love her,” he told her openly.

Kirika smiled at him for the first time since her arrival. She could sense his feelings for her mother were true and deep. His love for Mariko was palpable and it bridged the gap between them. She leaned toward him and Logan quickly took the cue and wrapped her in his arms. They spent the next couple of hours on the grounds, walking through the beautiful gardens and orchards and sitting beneath the cherry blossom trees. They spoke of many things, mostly of her and her mother and the memories he had of Mariko.

It turned out to be a very good day.

Nichi no saikō no.

The best of days.

 

 

TBC’d


	3. All My Children, Holy Crap!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Logan's children come to visit from every AU...

The dining room was a-buzz with conversation and chatter as the X-Men sat down for their evening meal. In honor of Logan's children who sprang out of the Japanese culture the menu focused on Oriental cuisine. Laughter and silliness abounded as those who were skilled with the use of chopsticks tried to teach or assist those who were not. Kurt made an announcement regarding the fact that he was able to pick up the skill quickly, having "just enough digits to make it work". The comment received good-hearted laughter from the others, a few squeals and giggles from the younger children, and a hearty chuckle from his best friend.

"Ya' can swashbuckle with the likes of Errol Flynn an' his kin, but ya' never had cause to use chopsticks before now?" Logan nudged the Elf.

"Normally I would just use ze sticks as swords," Kurt remarked, pretending to thrust one at Wolverine then twirled the two sticks in his thick fingers before tapping them loudly on the edge of the table, "Or to make rowdy music, ja?"

Amiko leaned closer to Kirika to translate for her. Kirika raised her napkin to hide her soft giggle and glanced at her father who smiled and winked at her. His gaze tracked across the table to Kirika's brother and sister - same parents, different realities, odd as that was to remember - to Marie and Brian.

Marie was busily scooping her food into her mouth, the chopsticks a blur between her mouth and the dish, tipping the bowl expertly as she focused on finishing her meal in a well-paced manner. Brian sat beside her, next to Scott; and the two of them seemed to be in some sort of quiet conversation. Brian's khaki pants, blue polo shirt and well groomed hair just put Wolverine to question as to which of his own genes that boy got.

The sound of chopsticks clicking together in a strangely loud manner caught Logan's attention and he looked toward the table behind him. Daken and Scotty were embroiled in a swashbuckling encounter with their eating utensils, half-standing from their seats to reach their opponent on the opposite side. Logan crooked an eyebrow in dismay and reached out to back-hand Kurt on the arm.

"Owww... vat vas dat for?" Kurt asked, rubbing his arm.

Logan pointed over his shoulder with his chopstick. "Thanks for givin' them ideas."

"Oh... blame me. Like zey need any help coming up vid vays to get rowdy. Zey are da sons of da Wolverine... zey don't need my help vid dat, mein freund."

That got another round of laughter before Logan finally turned around and tapped his sticks on the edge of the other table. Both boys paused in their jousting to turn and look at him. Logan simply looked at them evenly, blinked once... then again... then cocked his head ever so slightly and both boys slowly lowered themselves into their seats and straightened their bowls.

"Better," Logan complimented them with a nod. He turned his attention back to his own table and grinned. Behind his back the boys punched each other in the arm, blaming each other for once again drawing their father's attention. Logan smiled, allowing that, and continued eating.

From the other end of the table Ororo watched him closely as he dealt with his many children and smiled as he glanced her way. She was helping Kendall who insisted on trying to use the chopsticks like the other kids, but had a small fork sitting nearby just in case exasperation overcame stubbornness. Either, Storm figured, could be expected at any given time considering who her father was.

And it didn't take too much longer for Kendall to slam her tiny fists on the table and wail. "I caaaaaaan't!" she yelled and began to cry... loudly.

Logan's hyper-sensitive hearing made him cringe as the three year old wailed like the Banshee himself. Ororo tried to sooth the child and took the sticks from her tiny hands and pressed the fork into her fist.

Logan took a large mouthful from his crossed sticks when Kirika gasped beside him. He turned his gaze to her and noted she was looking above him. Glancing around quickly Logan noted that everyone was looking above his head.

"Kendall, no!" Storm tried to get the little girl's attention and hold back her own laughter at the same time.

Logan frowned and looked up to see a very small storm cloud hovering over his head and a little tiny lightning bolt shot out and disappeared. He lowered his head just in time to get a rather miniscule deluge from Kendall's frustration rainstorm soaking his hair and shoulders. He stared at Ororo and her small clone as the rest of the table broke out in raucous laughter. Even Charles and Hank found the event worth an amused chuckle from the faculty table nearby. Logan simply sat there with a bemused grin, wondering how and why he ended up being the target of that temper tantrum.

When the miniature thunderstorm hanging over his head finally dried up and disappeared; as Ororo was able to get Kendall's attention to the fork in her hand, Logan simply picked up his linen napkin and used it to dry his face before dabbing it across his shoulders and his dripping hair. The rest of the meal went without incident now that Kendall was able to satisfy her tummy with the use of the familiar fork.

The other children dared not test their father's unlimited patience, to the X-Men's pleasure. Lunch ended and the group quickly went their separate ways.

The boys went outside to play with Bobby tagging along as a sort of peer supervisor while the teenage girls followed Rogue and Kitty upstairs to listen to favorite CD's and try on all the clothes they'd gotten at the malls the day before. The X-Men went about their daily routines; whether on duty or off. Hank went to his lab with Scott and Brian in tow. Jeannie sat down to arts and crafts with Marie and Jade again as the two younger girls seemed to enjoy more creative endeavors.

Ororo picked up Kendall as she watched Logan head out of the dining room and most likely was heading upstairs to change out of his wet clothes. "Would you like to go see your daddy?" she asked the little Torrent who smiled big and nodded. "Very well," Ororo smiled back and followed Logan to the second floor.

When she reached his bedroom door, it was standing open so she peered around the frame carefully, not wanting to burst in on him without announcement. Instead, his voice rolled out toward her from his private bathroom. "You can come in Ro, I'm decent," he told her.

Ororo smiled and stepped inside the room, bouncing Kendall on her hip. "Are you all right, Logan?" she asked politely although the smile never left her face.

His face suddenly appeared from around the bathroom doorjamb as he briskly rubbed a thick towel against his shaggy hair. "Yeah, I'm fine. Why?"

"Oh, just curious," she replied, her eyes shining with the humor of the situation.

Logan disappeared for a second, tossing the towel over his shower rod to dry. He exited the bathroom wearing a fresh pair of jeans and a dry white undershirt.

"Daddyyyyy!" Kendall squealed at him, bouncing herself excitedly on Ororo's hip. Logan chuckled softly and walked to her with his hands out. Kendall immediately tried to launch herself from Storm's arms to go to him.

"Whoa there, Li'l Darlin'," he smiled wide as he took his youngest daughter from her mother. He looked at Kendall up close, taking in her every feature then he looked at Ororo. "She looks just like you."

"She does, yes," Ororo smiled with pride. "It is a little... awkward... isn't it?" she asked.

Logan looked over Kendall's head at her. "Is it awkward for you?" he asked curiously and only a little concerned.

Storm thought for a moment and then shook her head. "No, actually it isn't. I am... pleased... that in some alternate place you and I have..." she trailed off trying to think of a proper end to that thought.

"... made babies?" Logan finished for her with a sly grin.

Ororo blushed slightly, but maintained her dignity in the face of his teasing. "Yes," she answered simply.

"Well, I love ya', Ro. I always have," he told her, trying to make it sound like the kind of love between friends and teammates. Ororo however read through his attempt to offer his confession lightly.

"As I do you, Logan. Perhaps neither one of us is being completely honest about the depth of our feelings for the other...." she nearly confessed now that they stood in private with their result of their affection for one another cuddled against his chest.

Logan hesitated to look up at her; his gaze darting around her as if he felt a sense of guilt at being caught at something he shouldn't be doing. When he did meet her gaze, he simply said, "I guess it'd be sort of futile to deny it...."

"I believe it would, yes - given the evidence sitting in your arms," she replied.

The two long-time friends and teammates shared a moment of silent contemplation and then Storm broke the silence. "So.... what shall we do now?" she asked.

Logan thought about it for a moment then brightened, handing Kendall back to Ro with a kiss dropped to the top of her head. "Well, I'm gonna do a load of laundry since I now have enough for a full load." He quickly donned a clean flannel shirt over his white tee and snatched up the basket near the bathroom door. He smiled at the two as he walked by them on the way out. "You can come along if ya' want."

Ororo did just that, taking advantage of the moment so the small family could spend some time together.

\----------------------------------------

They took the elevator all the way to the sub-basement where the utilities were stationed. When they reached the laundry room, Ororo put Kendall down so she could run around and explore while she stayed beside Logan, opening the washer lid for him as he lifted the clothes from the basket and dropped them in.

He reached up to grab a bottle of detergent from the shelf above the unit as Kendall tried to push a chair over so she could see. Ororo assisted her, placing the wooden chair beside Logan and helping Kendall climb onto it.

"What you doing, Daddy?" she asked her dad.

"Laundry," he told her.

"What is laundry?" she asked.

"This," Logan said, gesturing casually at the clothes in the machine.

Kendall leaned over, wrapping her fingers right around the rim of the washer she pulled herself over the edge of it to see inside. "Those is clothes," she told him.

"Those ARE clothes," he corrected.

"I know dat. I said dat," she frowned.

Ororo stepped back out of view to watch the father/daughter exchange and allow Kendall some time with her father. She leaned against the folding table with a grin as she observed.

"Well, when you put clothes into this machine... or one like it... it is called laundry."

"It change clothes to laundry?"

"Yep," Logan answered as he measured the detergent in a cup.

"What's dat?" she asked.

"It's laundry detergent. It's soap to wash the clothes in."

"Da clothes dat not clothes no more..."

"Right," he said with a grin.

"Oh." ---- "Daddy?"

"Yeah?"

"Why you doing laundry?"

"Everyone here does their own laundry," he explained, "because everybody has their own preferences… what they like an’ what they don’t like."

Kendall nodded and stared into the machine, watching it fill with water that slowly submerged the clothes. She continued to watch his actions with serious concentration as Logan poured the liquid detergent into the water. He grinned at his daughter’s undaunted attention as her eyes followed his every move.

"I like to wash my clothes in Tide," he mentioned as he poured the blue liquid in a circle around the agitator.

Kendall blinked and looked up at him with wide eyes and said, "Because it too cold out tide?"

Logan’s expression froze for a moment as he tried to dissect that question and Ororo barked a laugh behind him before stifling it behind an elegant hand. He smiled as he realized what his baby girl just said. Instead of correcting her misunderstanding he just went along with it. “Right, li’l darlin’. Cuz it's too cold outside."

Kendall nodded that she understood and watched him clothes the lid and turn a large dial.

"You wanna push the button?" Logan asked her, pointing to a flat black button. Kendall nodded with a bright smile. "Go ahead, push it." Kendall touched it with a tiny finger. "Push it hard." She pushed harder and it moved. They listened to the water rushing into the machine. "Look what you did," Logan told her and lifted the lid to show her. She smiled, he smiled and closed the lid before snatching her up from the chair. "Good job! Ready to go play now?" 

Kendall nodded as she was carried out of the basement in her father's arms. Storm followed them, still smiling. 

 

 

 

  
TBC'd


	4. All My Children, Holy Crap!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Logan and the rest of the X-Men get used to having his entire brood around the mansion

Scott and Jean were sitting watch in the control room of the Danger Room when the rift opened again. “Not again,” Scott exclaimed in mild surprise. He stood up to peer down at the anomaly below them. “Just how many kids does Logan have in the universe?”

“They aren’t all from this universe, remember,” Jean reminded him with a smile. She too stood up to see who it would leave in its wake.

The rift lit up the training room with a bright glow that made both of them squint their eyes against it, before depositing a small child in the center of the room, and blinking out of existence again.

Jean smiled and exchanged a glance with Scott before heading down to collect the child while Scott hit the comm button. “Logan---?”

“Yeah?” came over the speaker on the console.

“You better get down to the Danger Room.”

“You gotta be kiddin’ me.”

“Wish I were, man,” Scott told him.

 

Logan had been sitting down to have lunch with Hank and Ororo when the call came through so they decided to accompany him to greet the new visitor. When they walked in Scott was standing a short distance from the blast doors grinning. Jean was further away seemingly focused on a game of Hide and Seek. Her red head appeared and disappeared around some crates and other equipment at the far end.  
“What’s goin’ on?” Logan asked as he entered the room.

“Jean’s trying to round up our latest guest,” Scott grinned. “You’re gonna love this one.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Logan’s voice rumbled.

“Dada!”

The tiny voice caught their attention and the group of adults looked toward the other end of the room. Jean popped out from behind an equipment crate looking in the direction of the tiny voice.

“Where is he?” she asked.

The four other adults scanned the room curiously when the pitter-patter of tiny bare feet caught Logan’s attention. He stepped forward and moved in the direction of the sound when the toddler came running out into the open.

Logan stopped and watched as the little boy ran toward him.

“Da…da!” he screeched.

Ororo and Jean beamed at the sight. Hank and Scott grinned in amusement as the child ran up and slammed into Logan’s legs.

“Dada! Dada!” His little fists clutched at Logan’s jeans. Logan bent down to pick the boy up but he went between Wolverine’s legs and hid behind him. “Dada, Dada, Dada,” he chanted and then ran off again as fast as his chubby little legs could carry him.

Logan turned to watch as Jean went after him. She laughed as the baby led her on a merry chase again in and around the crates and equipment.

“He’s fast, I’ll give him that,” Hank commented.

Logan shot him a strange look.

“Gotcha!” Jean’s voice followed by a squeal and then a scream drew their attention.

She emerged from the stack of crates carrying a kicking, screaming, diaper-clad hellion. He had dark hair and dark eyes and was pitching a fit at having been caught. Despite the wrestling match Jean found it rather funny as she walked up to Logan who was staring at the banshee in her arms with a dismayed look.

“Oh yeah… he’s yours,” she said.

Scott laughed at that and Ororo simply smiled.

“I would like to give him a check up, if you don’t mind, before we go upstairs. Get it done before he meets his brothers and sisters,” Hank suggested, blinking over the rim of his glasses at the raging child in Jean’s arms. “I’ll get set up, bring him along if you will,” he said and exited the room.

Logan was still staring at the child who was fit to be tied when Jean leaned toward him to hand his son over.

“Here ya’ go… Dada,” she said and dropped the baby into his arms.

Logan had to hold on tight as the boy kicked and squealed to be let down.

Ororo and Jean accompanied him to the infirmary with his charge while Scott went back to the control room to keep watch again.

 

  
In the Medical Bay, Hank was giving the toddler a serious check up but could find absolutely nothing at all wrong with the boy. Logan stood a few feet away watching the entire scene with his large arms folded across his chest. Ororo and Jean were all smiles while helping to keep the boy on the bed.

He crawled from the head to the foot, then stood up and toddled a moment before catching his balance and nearly running right off the edge of the bed. Hank had to catch him as he launched himself into the air. He put him back on the bed where Ororo had to wrestle to keep him in place and that didn’t work very well. Jean couldn’t stop smiling.

“How do we know this one is mine,” Logan asked, but it sounded more like a statement.

The three X-Men turned and looked at him as if he was in denial.

“Are you serious, Logan?” Jean asked with a laugh. “He looks just like you!”

“Behaves like you as well,” Ororo added, which only made Jean laugh aloud.

“I must admit,” Hank added, “I’m not feeling any doubt on that being in question either. And obviously the Wolverine in the other reality believes, or knows, this child is the son of one of your incarnations.”

Logan sighed and dropped his arms, placing his hands on his hips. “What am I supposed to do with him?”

Hank tried to listen to the boy’s lungs and heart with a stethoscope, but the boy kept grabbing it and squealing into the microphone, making McCoy cringe. He pulled the ear pieces out of his ears to save his hearing and answered Logan’s question. “I would suggest that you just be his father.”

Logan’s expression twisted into a silent question.

Hank shrugged. “He’s going to need a name while he’s here,” he said and looked to Logan. Everyone else looked to him too.

“Oh… umm... I dunno.” Logan said, scratching his whiskers. “What about… James?”

“James?” Jean asked, wondering if there was a specific reason.

“Yeah,” Logan nodded. “James… James Hudson…” he said, thinking about his long time friend. “James Hudson Logan,” he said with a smile and then the smile faltered, replaces with a frown. “I don’t know anything about babies.”

“Don’t worry. We’ll be here to help,” Jean said as she slipped a snap shirt on the tiny boy, snapped it closed around him and lifted him off the bed to put him on the floor.

He immediately took off, running past Logan and out the door. Logan could hear his bare feet padding down the tiled floor as he stared at Jean like she was crazy.

“Oops, sorry,” she said with a smile.

Logan turned and moved swiftly out the door and followed the sounds of tiny feet on the hall floor. He finally caught up with the boy after two left turns and a right and he was still going strong. When his father came up behind him, scooping him up on the run, the boy screeched loudly and laughed.

“Gotcha!” Logan said.

 

After corralling the youngster, Logan thought it might be a good idea to bring him to the playroom to meet some of his other siblings. Since the mansion wasn’t actually set up to tend to pre-pubescent children, much less toddlers, the professor had designated the small parlor off the main library as a place for the children to spend their days playing and socializing with each other as well as the students of the school who chose to visit them when they weren’t in a scheduled class – those who were old enough to go to class, that is.

Baby Hudson succeeded in causing chaos in any room he entered; whether he was simply pulling toys from the toy box and throwing them as far as he could in all directions – which wasn’t more than a couple of feet from wherever he was standing, or trying to climb on Kirika’s lap, slamming himself into Scotty’s legs as the older boy sat reading a book near the window, or getting in the way of Jade coloring in her book by stealing her crayons.

Often it was either Jean or Ororo watching over the children- or, as Logan liked to refer to them in private, The Daycare of the Damned – sometimes one of the older “foster” siblings, like Kitty or Jubilee would babysit. Far too often it was Logan stomping down the main hallway to the parlor to put an end to some discourse that Hudson had started, often scooping up the toddler and taking him from the room.

With his acute sense of hearing, he was never far enough away to not be able to hear any issues arise. His sudden appearance in the door frame usually ended any complaining and whining immediately, although Baby Hudson seemed too young and too oblivious to understand that his father’s appearance demanded a sense of decorum. He’d continue to terrorize his brothers and sisters, or continually evade Ororo and Jean’s attempts to snare him, until Logan stepped into the room and scooped him up; to which he’d kick and howl to be let down, forcing Logan to leave the room with him.

He’d take the boy down to the sub-levels and let him loose down there to run up and down the wide lengthy corridors where he could release all that energy without bothering anyone. Logan would sometimes just stand with his hands resting on his hips and watch as the midget juggernaut ran past, this way... then that way. Other times Logan would chase him, making comments like, “I’m gonna getcha”, which would make the boy screech in a tone shrill enough to shatter glass.

That’s where he could be found, until it was time for a snack or to sit down for a meal with the others… or time to change the diaper. Whew! Now that was a test of dedicated parenting for a guy with a bloodhound’s sense of smell. His nose would twitch at the first scent of something occupying that diaper, which, besides other benefits, assured that the child would never remain in a soiled diaper for long.

That’s where Jean found him this time… again. She stood in the doorway watching him. He had Baby Hudson on the changing table in the “nursery” and wrestling the boy to keep him safely on the table with one hand pressed to the boy’s belly and the other hand grabbing the wipes, the powder, and then a new diaper. He flipped it open and slid it under the wiggling buttocks and swiftly pulled the other side up between the flailing legs to secure each side with the sticky tabs.

“What will they think of next, eh?” he muttered, remembering the days of cloth diapers and safety pins… which he also recalled weren’t all that safe when dealing with a wriggling chaos engine. He chuckled softly to himself at his play on words.

Once he had the boy secured again, Logan let him stand up on the table while keeping his large hand on the baby’s tummy to keep him from jumping off. He gathered the dirty diaper up in one hand and toed the diaper disposal bin with his foot. When the lid opened wide he tossed it in with a little bit of gusto, resembling a basketball player dunking the ball.

“There we go. All done!” he declared with a smile at his tiny son.

The boy bounced on his toes and tried to dive over Logan’s hand to the floor, echoing his father’s exclamation. “Aw dun!”

Logan caught him easily. “Whatdya’ doin? Tryin’ to fly?” So with that, he held the boy on his hands and swung him in a circle like a plane. “You wanna fly, huh? Here we go!”

Hudson squealed in delight as he went around in a circle faster and faster. Logan laughed too as they took a moment to play together.

“You’re a natural,” Jean offered from the doorway. She smiled when he slowed and looked at her.

“It ain’t that hard,” he replied, not at all surprised by her voice. He’d scented her perfume long before she arrived at the door.

“Some people would argue with you on that,” she said and stepped into the room. “How are you holding up?” she asked.

Logan stopped playing with the boy and looked at her. He hefted his son to his shoulder and grinned at her. “I’m doin’ great,” he told her.  
Jean studied him for a moment; his eyes, his expression, his body language, and she had to smile because she realized he really was doing great. Fatherhood suited Logan, to everyone’s surprise. And to become a father to so many so fast, they thought he’d be overwhelmed. He did have his moments when he just threw up his hands and walked out of the room or out of the building, but those weren’t many, nor did he leave for long. He seemed to really like having a big family.

“Aw dun!” Hudson told Jean loudly with one tiny arm in the air and kicked his feet against his father’s abdomen.

“Oh, man,” Logan grunted. “You’re a bruiser,” he said and let the boy down.

The toddler immediately sprinted out the door and down the hall on tiny legs and disappeared. Logan and Jean watched him as he rounded a corner and was gone. Jean looked at Logan and smiled. Logan looked at her… and shrugged.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lunch was an interesting event. While the other children were old enough to take care of their own needs, Hudson and Kendall were still far too young to be able to tend to themselves. The older siblings sat with the younger ones and were able to help them with any details… like picking up a dropped spoon and replacing it, or reaching the napkins, or pouring another glass of juice, etc.

It was Spaghetti-O’s with Meatballs for Scotty and Jade who didn’t have Chef Boy-R-Dee in their alternate reality. The rest of the children had tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches which Jean and Kitty put together and one request from Brian to have the crust trimmed from his sandwich and suddenly everyone wanted theirs cut off too.

Ororo sat with Kendall at a small round table near the windows and stirred the small bowl of soup, blowing on it carefully as she fed it to the little girl. Kendall seemed more intent on her grilled cheese sandwich than caring about whether the soup came with it or not.

She blew on another spoonful and Kendall opened her mouth to receive it. Ororo fed the soup to her baby daughter and looked to her table companion to see how he was faring with his little lunch partner.

Logan’s sandwich was three inches thick with smoked ham and cheese, not grilled. Next to him he had a small bowl of cooked green beans which he spooned out onto the tray of the high chair for Hudson to pick up with his fingers. It kept the boy occupied while practicing fine motor skills and learning how to feed himself. In between the finger beans, Logan pulled a piece of ham out of his own sandwich and held it on the tip of one finger in front of the little boy. Baby Hudson would look at it, and reach out for it, plucking it from his father’s finger capturing it in a balled up fist and shoving it in his mouth rather inelegantly while chasing another green bean across the tray with tiny stubby fingers before capturing it.

Logan glanced over to see how Ororo and Kendall were doing only to find Ororo smiling at him.  
“What,” he said.

“Nothing,” Ororo said still smiling.

Logan smiled back. He looked at her thoughtfully then his gaze moved to their daughter. Their daughter. Those two words caused his heart to leap in his chest with the thought - No, with the fact. Kendall was the daughter of Storm and Wolverine. Who woulda thought?

Logan blinked again because the way Ororo was smiling at him, it would seem as though she might’ve thought it… once or twice.

Really?

“Are you all right?” Ororo asked; her voice pulling him from his contemplation.

“Huh?” he said.

“Are you all right?” she repeated. “You look… distracted.”

“Oh,” he said, thinking. “Yeah, I guess I am… a little.”

“Do you wish to talk about it?” she asked, feeding Kendall another spoonful of cooled soup.

“Ummm… uhhh,” he stammered. “Umm… I don’t think so…”

Ororo smiled again. “You do realize that we should probably discuss this at some point, right?” she pointed out.

Logan’s face twisted into a pitifully confused expression. “Do we have to?”

Ororo’s smile grew and she laughed lightly; not at him, but with him. She understood the mixed feelings that they both felt when they first saw Kendall, but where Ororo embraced the young girl and her existence openly, Logan seemed to be better when not thinking about it too deeply.

“I would like to talk about it, if you are open to it… at some point,” Ororo told him casually, not putting any demand to her tone; after all, the baby girl was not truly theirs, but belonged to an alternate version of themselves. 

Logan tore another piece of ham from his sandwich and held it closer to the baby. Hudson reached for it but couldn’t quite get it and Logan was deep in thought and not paying attention. So Hudson reached out with two little hands and grabbed onto his father’s larger one to pull the food laden digit closer to him. When the food was within his reach, Hudson leaned forward and took the clump of sandwich meat from the tip of Logan’s finger with his mouth, nearly biting off the tip of Logan’s finger in the process.

“Owww!” Logan barked, pulling his finger away from the boy. He looked at it and saw two puncture holes quickly healing and his gaze shot to Baby Hudson who was giggling and chewing his well earned prize.

Logan reached out and used fingers from both hands to pry the boy’s mouth open gently to peer inside. Hudson whined loudly at the intrusion, trying to push his father’s hands away. Logan could see the chewed ham on the boy’s tongue then looked at his bottom gum line to see a tiny tooth in the front. He moved his thumb on the upper gum and exposed two tiny fangs.

“Logan!” Ororo admonished when she saw him grab the boy’s face and Hudson began to resist.

“Holy crap! He’s got fangs!” Logan exclaimed.

“So do you,” Ororo reminded him with a disapproving look.

“Yeah, but I got a full set of chompers!” he said. “He’s got three teeth and two of them are oversized canines?? Is that right? Shouldn’t he get his eye teeth and grazing teeth first?”

Ororo blinked at him. “Grazing teeth?” she echoed.

“You know what I mean,” Logan told her. “I mean... is that right? Babies aren’t supposed to be able to rip flesh from bone at a year old.”

Hank turned in his chair nearby to answer Logan’s concerns. “First… the boy is probably about sixteen months not twelve. He can run like the dickens, but that’s not so unusual for younger toddlers to be able to walk and even run early. His speech ability and fine motor skills however are indicative for a child sixteen to eighteen months of age.”

Logan looked at him and Henry blinked, pushing his glasses a bit higher on his nose.

“The fangs, however, are obviously part of his mutation… which he must have inherited from his father.”

Logan tilted his head with a sarcastic look at McCoy. Henry simply grinned.

“Big help, Blue.”

“You’re welcome.” Hank turned back to his own lunch companions. Jean smiled openly at Logan and Scott was at least cognizant of the fact that it was better to disguise a grin by shoving half his sandwich in his mouth and pretend he hadn’t heard a thing.

 

 

TBC’d


End file.
